Cabinets of Curiosity activity 3: playground at St Eanswythe’s
Use the oil painting of children in the playground of St Eanswythe’s Primary School, Folkestone as the starting point for a host of cross-curricular topics - from healthy bodies and the benefits of active play, to what life was like at school in the past, and the history of toys and games.
See Learn with Objects Cabinets of Curiosity 7: Playground at St Eanswythe’s.
Learning objectives
Increased knowledge and understanding of schools and playground games in the past
That active outdoor play is good for our health and wellbeing.
Curriculum links
KS1-2 History (Local area Study)
KS1-4 Art and Design
KS1-2 Science (healthy bodies, benefits of exercise)
KS1-2 English (speaking and listening, creative writing, role play)
Explore the painting with the children on the interactive whiteboard.
- What’s happening in the picture?
- How many different activities can you see?
- When do you think it was painted? Why?
- Is anything different from a playground today?
- Is anything the same?
- How could we find out more about what school and playground games were like in the past?
To find out more the children could interview teachers, parents or grandparents about the playground games they played. They can also research old playground games in books and online and present their findings back to the class.
Alternatively, in PE, dance or drama children could research and recreate a school playtime from the past or, for English, create a piece of creative writing about playtime at school.
Create a new artwork, inspired by this painting, but showing the games you play in your playground today.
Materials needed:
- A3 paper or card
- poster paint or coloured pens
- pencils
Children can work individually or in pairs to create their artwork which then can be affixed to the wall as a large collage.
Learn with Objects links
See Learn with Objects Cabinets of Curiosity: 7 Playground at St Eanswythe’s for inspiration. There are other school-related objects at Learn with Objects Cabinets of Curiosity 19; sampler and WW2 6: schooldays.